


the sound of us

by rainingvenus



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: 3RACHA besties, Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bang Chan & Han Jisung | Han & Seo Changbin are Best Friends, Developing Relationship, Dialogue Heavy, Han Jisung | Han Being an Idiot, Hwang Hyunjin & Kim Seungmin are Best Friends, Inspired by Music, M/M, Misunderstandings, Strangers to Lovers, Writer Seo Changbin, a lot of character study because im bored, also like, and more importantly, and the wingman we all need, as ideal fools in love, because fuck plot this author once again indulges in conversations, excessive and poor use of science as metaphors, for character development, for the sake of love, how many tags is too many tags, how to train your dragon, little angst, mY favourite thing to write, me when im changbin and need an excuse to write a million songs about seungmin, medicine major! seungmin, music major!changbin, oh yea wait, ok ill add more later and shut up for now, side hyunsung, solving misunderstandings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-14
Updated: 2020-11-14
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:20:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,558
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27562177
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rainingvenus/pseuds/rainingvenus
Summary: "It feels like," Seungmin didn't meet his eyes, "I'm in the same circle as you, but on the opposite end across you.""Let's fold it in half then and make them meet," Changbin smiled stupidly, "turn it into an infinity loop."-Falling in love was always easy, the first fall always was. How did you fight the plummet and pull of gravity though? How did you let the apprehensions and odds not hurl you away with the wind? How did you not wonder about everything that could go wrong? How did opposites co-exist, when they were called opposites for a reason?orChangbin suggests they watch How To Train Your Dragon, and Seungmin scoffs. An hour later, tears stream down his face; Romantic Flight by John Powell fills the room around them and Changbin simply stares at the boy, not sure if he's baffled or endeared, but definitely sure he's deeply deeply in love.
Relationships: Bang Chan/Lee Felix, Han Jisung | Han/Hwang Hyunjin, Kim Seungmin/Seo Changbin
Comments: 5
Kudos: 23





	the sound of us

**Author's Note:**

> story title is from keshi's 'us', though the keshi song i believe really fits this story is 'always'.
> 
> i have written a lot in the past few months but been too messed up to complete anything so i hope i get the strength to finish this one. Ironically its once again when im unable to leave bed with a crazy cold from the horrific welcome winter has given me which i think is the onlt way to force me to actually post what i write. kindly accept the creative liberties and self-projections performed in this story. this story is only for fun and to relieve my stress. we know nothing about idol lives so this is by no means any kind of assumption of Changbin and Seungmin's relationship. also i swear the story gets better with the next chapters. im just shit at summaries tags and first chapters. please feast

_I traced every vein of my heart_

_I reached back to where I started_

_Where I thought I’d left you to never meet again_

_Was it you who pulled me?_

_What do you need:_

_For me to never reach the top_

_Or for me to take you along_

_Without forgetting?_

  
  


-

  
  


The college steps seemed to crowd in front of Changbin, the kind that made you wonder if the architect designing the campus had spent his life in temples. How did one just think: Oh, an efficient infrastructure for 20 year olds on the verge of death, insanity or academic failure? 500 outdoor stairs to every class. 

_“They’re meant to give you a healthy lifestyle. Forced exercise incorporated into your daily routine,” Chan’s voice rang in his head._

  
  


_“Shut the hell up, capitalist slave,” Han’s response rang just along with it._

_“I’m your hyung.”_

_“Shut the hell up, capitalist slave hyung.”_

Changbin didn’t have any conflict with the concept of daily healthy walks for someone who happened to be the only person in his friend group who _actually_ worked out (discounting Chan, who considered giving his homies piggyback rides weightlifting), but the stairs were _definitely_ an unnecessary inconvenience for people who ran late for half their classes. 

Sighing, he initiated his daily ritual of whispering “Fuck you” to the first step before breaking out into a run clambering upwards and not stopping till he reached the top, which was always in the form of feeling like his lungs would never work again. He smacked his chest, panting extremely unattractively till his legs stopped feeling like someone had replaced the blood in his thighs with pure hydrochloric acid; kind of glad being late meant barely any other students were around to watch. Not that it wasn’t totally normal for a guy to look like he was about to pass out on top of the famous Physics building entrance. He finally stood up straight, mildly smug at how after a semester of doing this, his recovery time from the run had shortened to only 40 seconds from being like a whole 5 minutes at the start of the year. He smiled. If he ran in the corridor at the same speed, he might even make it in the hall before his lecturer. No matter how many research papers Han authored and read out to him on the vileness of people who worked out, Seo Changbin always **always** thanked the stars and himself for doing so or it was a fat goodbye to all his morning lectures. 

Jogging to a stop at the second last door, he quickly skidded in and chucked his backpack on the only empty seat he spotted; the lecturer entering right as soon as Changbin sat down. Who said time was undefeatable?

A cough sounded from next to him. He turned his head to the sound, facing a boy next to him he’d never seen before. Call him odd but Changbin knew the face of every person in his class a few days into taking it, what Han very vividly described as one of his most useless talents. The boy was dark-haired, bangs falling in his eyes which studied Changbin through round wire-rimmed spectacles with an almost displeased but blank expression. Changbin suddenly felt self-conscious. He must’ve something wrong to earn a stranger’s disapproval this fast. 

“Yeah?”

“I said this seat’s taken. I think you didn’t hear me the first time,” the boy spoke, hands folded in front of him and resting on top of his notebook. Changbin’s ears stuck to how unusually formal the guy’s korean was. He felt his cheeks flush. 

“Oh, I’m sorry, I think I must’ve missed it because of the noise in the room,” Changbin explained in a low voice, for the lecturer had begun to speak now, “There’s no other free seat in the room anyway,” he said. What did the guy expect?

“Oh, it’s okay,” the boy’s expression suddenly changed, voice way quieter and eyes glancing to the phone lying next to his hands, “My friend just said they won’t make it anyway.”

“Oh, cool.” Changbin mumbled, not sure what else to say. He shifted to pull out his notebook too when curiosity got the better of him. 

“I’ve never seen you in this class before, by the way,” he whispered. 

“Huh?” the boy had started paying attention to the lecture so when he turned to Changbin he had a puzzled expression, reminding him a bit of a lost puppy. What the fuck, but also kind of cute.

“Oh, I- uh, I’m taking this class from today as an elective. I’m a medicine major,” he whispered back, hand scribbling an underline under the title of the lecture.

Changbin nodded, turning to face the board again. He’d climbed a lot of stairs to make it here and a new guy wasn’t worth being thrown out in the first few minutes of class. The boy’s lock-screen lit up with a buzz again, and though it was a blatant invasion of a stranger’s privacy, in Changbin’s defence it was lying right in his line of sight, and the name that popped up on the screen was his best friend’s.

  
  


**_Han:_ ** _i think i’m gna die my nose is SO blcoekd_ (5m ago)

 ** _Han:_** _if i dont come, dont give my seat to anyone in my memory._ (5m ago)

Another buzz sounded, drawing Changbin’s attention again.

  
  


**_Han:_ ** _Seungmo ~my best bro~~_ (45s ago)

 **_Han:_ ** _please make nice nice notes n send them to me after class. A kiss for you ~_

(40s ago)

 ** _Han:_** [GIF] (30s ago)

There weren’t many people called Han who took Physics 112, and there was only one Han who was missing from today’s Physics 112, the same Han who was Changbin’s best friend passed out with a cold in his dorm claiming his friend Death had finally taken mercy on him, only to be wrapped in a blanket by his roommate with instructions to take his medicine and shut up. Also the Han who had made Changbin run late when he’d stopped by to check up on him.

“Hey um-” Changbin spoke, gently elbowing the boy. He looked towards Changbin, who frankly, was scared to see the displeased eyes from earlier. He didn’t, however. Changbin let that fact surge his confidence. 

“I didn’t mean to uh- look at your phone, but is the guy you were waiting for, by any chance, Han Jisung?” he said, keeping his voice as low as possible. 

Seungmin’s eyes rounded in surprise again. 

“You know him?”

Changbin laughed lightly. “I’m his best friend.”

Seungmin seemed to be processing his response, till he broke into a small smile accompanied by what Changbin decided was the exasperating love and hate one felt when reminded that they were related to Han.

“Oh, yeah. I knew him through his roommate,” he spoke.

“Hyunjin? Small world,” Changbin couldn’t help but smile. He wondered if this boy permanently had such a soft voice.

“I’m Seungmin, by the way.”

Changbin recognised the name from some ramble of Han. It was hard to recall more on the name because Han probably knew half the campus, and made sure he told Changbin about them.

“Seo Changbin,” he said.

Seungmin grinned, “I know. I see you perform a lot.”

“A lot?” it was Changbin’s turn to be surprised.

Seungmin looked a bit embarrassed, realising what he’d said, maybe. Or maybe he was just finding it awkward to talk so weirdly.

“Uh, i mean, don’t you perform a lot on campus events? I went to a few of Jisung’s invites and saw you too,” he whispered, eyes distractedly shooting to the lecturer to make sure they weren’t being caught. She hadn’t noticed, but because she’d begun to jot down a ridiculously long equation on the blackboard behind her. Changbin didn’t get a chance to respond the entire lecture after that, for it all flew by in fervent note-taking and solving of questions. At a point, the lecturer asked for a volunteer, and Changbin was surprised to see Seungmin raise his hand and head forward. For a medicine major, the guy was pretty good at Physics, especially considering this wasn’t their beginner class and the lecturer seemed pleased as well as Seungmin untangled the equation on the board. Changbin’s eyes followed him as he returned to his seat, who to his surprise flashed him a sudden beaming smile that revealed pearly teeth. 

“Oh so you’re a genius too?” Changbin asked as Seungmin fixed his chair.

He laughed, a bashful hand rubbing his head and ruffling his hair. 

“No actually. I’m terrible at Physics and the only reason I’m here is to get better so I can understand whatever goes on in my Biophysics course,” Seungmin said, “I only did this question because I solved it just an hour ago. Knew the answer by heart.”

Changbin wanted to ask what the fuck the guy was doing studying Physics 112 at 7 AM. 

“There’s something called Biophysics??”

“Uh yeah. We’re doing it in freshman year,” Seungmin confusedly tipped his head to watch Changbin. 

“Medicine,” Changbin made a small gagging noise.

Seungmin let out a small gasp at that. His face contorted back into the same smile as before immediately though. 

“What’s your major?”

“Music. Physics is where half the campus collides into each other. An explanation for life and art both,” he spoke. Seungmin thoughtfully nodded. 

Changbin’s eyes traced the long varsity sleeves slipping over Seungmin’s fingers which were tucked in his elbows for he had his arms crossed across himself. One of them tapped gently on his own arm in some unknown rhythm.

Hummers, Changbin called such people. He probably hummed to himself. Must be nice with that soft voice too. 

“Physics feels like Law to me. Everyone in the universe is forced to obey it,” Seungmin mused.

“And if you don’t, you disappear.”

“That’s a bit too harsh. I’d just say there’s a consequence,” Seungmin raised an eyebrow. Changbin rolled his eyes. He was joking.

“Say that when you do,” Changbin shot back, not really determined to lose in the sudden challenge he felt brewing in the conversation.

“ _No I’m not afraid_

 _To disappear,”_ Seungmin sang out of absolutely nowhere, a large smile growing on his face. His voice really was unusually pretty. Natural singer voice.

Changbin was always right. Spontaneous hummer. What he wasn’t able to predict was the giggle Seungmin would let out right after finishing. Something seemed to tip off the edge of a cliff inside Changbin.

“Alright Mr. Hozier, suit yourself,” he amusedly turned to face the lecturer again.

“That’s Phoebe Bridgers you uncultured twat.”

“Did you just call an older stranger a twat?”

“So we’re strangers now? Guess I’ll leave ,” Seungmin proceeded to stand from his chair, smirking as Changbin tugged him back down with a pull on his wrist. 

“Idiot, the instructor’s watching you.”

“I know. I’m irresistible.”

Changbin elbowed him as quietly as he could. The girl next to Seungmin sent them a glare. To their luck, the lecture neared an end just then. Changbin was surprised how unusually quick time had passed. As he packed his notebook, Seungmin coughed again. He looked up to see him holding out his phone, expression oddly anticipating.

“Can we exchange numbers? I actually needed someone to share notes from this class from the lectures I’ve missed and Han has frankly been on zero use-'' Seungmin was cut short by Changbin taking the phone with a smile. He typed in his number, adding the emoji of a tiny running man next to his name. Seungmin took it back, immediately backspacing it. Changbin was too busy thinking about the small brush of their fingers to hear Seungmin add a bunny emoji instead. 

“I’ll text you!” he waved sweetly with his right hand, the other adorably clutching his backpack straps as they parted ways outside the building. Changbin watched his round head disappear in the crowd of science students towards the Medicine department. He let out a small breath, letting his feet take him where he belonged as well. Music theory. Somehow, the descent down the dreadful stairs didn’t earn another ‘Fuck you’ from him that day. He wondered who Phoebe Bridgers was, instead.

  
  
  
  
  
  


-

  
  


It wasn’t till he finished his classes for the day and collapsed on his bed in the evening that his phone buzzed with an unknown contact. 

**_Unknown:_** _Seungmin in the building_

 **_Unknown:_ ** _Can I call you hyung_

Changbin stared at the introduction. He saved the contact after a minute’s thought.

**_Bin:_ **yo

 **_Bin:_ ** _no_

 **_Seungmo:_ ** _Ok changbin-ssi. Sleep well._

_**Bin** : it’s 6pm _

_**Seungmo:** And _

_**Bin:** are there any normal medicine students? Asking for research _

_**Seungmo:** I’m sure you’ve never committed any research your whole life _

_**Bin:** fair _

_**Bin:** cant say the same for you tho _

_**Seungmo:** ??? _

_**Bin:** i meant i loved your research on the famous rapper Seo Changbin _

Changbin grinned. No response came for a whole minute.

**_Seungmo:_ ** _Oh yeah We’ve labelled him as the uniquest specimen we’ve come across. Scientists are baffled by how someone so small exists._

_**Bin:** With the power of the demon inside my brain who makes my music for me _

_**Bin:** also dont you have any dead bodies to study or something_

_**Seungmo** : None today :( We need volunteers _

_**Bin:** why the fuc do you capitalise every text’s first letter _

_**Seungmo** : I respect language. _

_**Bin:** ok boomer _

The door slammed shut just then. Chan’s alarmingly exhausted looking body shuffled in, a defeated arm tossing a black messenger bag on the desk at the other end of the room. 

“Good evening,” Changbin beamed at his best friend. Chan mumbled a response before doing a double take. 

“What’s up with you?” he asked, narrowing his eyes as he pulled back the covers of his bed.

“Huh?” 

“You haven’t smiled at me like that in at least a month.”

Changbin stared at Chan. 

“Go to sleep,” he threw a pillow at the curly haired older. Chan didn’t need to be told twice. He’d finally hit 4 deadlines that morning. Changbin knew for a fact that the total amount of sleep the older had had for the past three days was a hopeful 5 hours. 

He closed his phone after deciding a point to meet at to exchange notes and slides the next day with Seungmin. It was odd for Changbin to befriend someone this quick, though it wasn’t like he was really introverted. He never had a large tolerance for people who grew too comfortable before him to even be sure on first meetings, but something about Seungmin’s witty comebacks and ridiculous exhibition of an undoubtedly highly elaborate work and life ethic didn’t make him feel so. Curiosity filled him instead. Maybe he should start paying more attention to Han’s rambles on his friends. 

  
  


He ended up spending the next two hours listening to Phoebe Bridgers on his laptop. The same tipping off a cliff feeling seemed to possess him, only this time he clung to it, wording it into his lyric notebook for later, though not really able to decipher it fully.

As the night fell further and further outside his window, he pondered the unusual pleasantness of his day. Maybe Chan had a point, like he always did.

-

  
  


I would volunteer

To be your dead body

If today wasn’t the first day

I felt a little

little bit alive 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> comments and kudos notifications give my sad little brain an insane amount of serotonin so dont be shy and feel free to leave any as a public charity service!! also stream Cypher by Changbin and Seungmin's new cover. see u soon  
> (update)
> 
> i really really want to write on but ive had a lot of shit go down in life the day i posted the first chapter so thank you for your patience. please wear your masks so i get better and manage to write another chapter


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